Jordan Day 2

 Salaam Jordan Day 2:

After watching the setting sun in the Dead Sea ,last night we got up in the morning to see the full moon reflected in the waters and setting in the sea on the West Bank.. The beach was to open at 8.30. We had our breakfast … foul(pronounced fool Jordan's oldest dish) made of fava beans, various types of bread garnished with oregano and tahini, hummus, Babaganoush, and all that we dream of in a Middle Eastern Mediterranean platter.

With cats and the sun and the sea for company, we had a fabulous breakfast and then went ahead for the big event of the trip. A swim, or shall I say a float in the Dead Sea. For anyone planning this trip, I would advise you to wear slippers or sandals with a strap to tie them. The salt around the sea is sharp and cuts through the skin on the sole and feet. I wore slippers and tentatively got into the water. I am just a floater, not a swimmer, but it felt good to lie on my back and just float around. Of course, one of the slippers decided to have a float of its own and I had to retrieve it and had to walk barefoot on the salt deposits for a few seconds but that was enough for a few light bruises. Hence this warning for future travellers. The historical, geological and geographical contexts of the Sea are interesting and worth a read.

After a few minutes of floating, we did the next thing, rubbed black mud from the sea. A large bowl of mud was kept on the beach. With the hope that it would solve a lot of my pigmentation issues and makes me glow, I applied it generously. But we were getting late for the next leg of our journey. So, back to the sea we went to wash it off.

Much of wisdom comes and is given later. As we were walking back to the room, a local tourist told us we should have scraped mud off the bed of the sea and applied it. That is more useful. A heads up to all future visitors to the Dead Sea.

And we were off for the next part of the trip to the Wadi Rum. An interesting trip too.